Unity Party chairman and former ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan announced he is withdrawing from Israel’s 2026 election race on Friday.
In a statement, Erdan said the party had little likelihood of crossing the electoral threshold and that efforts to form mergers with other parties had failed to materialize, leading him to suspend the campaign.
“Despite the many efforts we made, the support for the Unity Party I established so far does not provide a high likelihood of crossing the electoral threshold, and the possibilities of joining with additional parties in the unity bloc are also not materializing,” Erdan said. “Therefore, I have decided that the Unity Party will not run in the upcoming election.”
Erdan said he believes voters are primarily focused on determining who will become prime minister rather than on his party’s platform of establishing a broad unity government.
“Unfortunately, after about a month of campaigning, reality shows that in the upcoming election, a large majority of the public is seeking above all a clear decision on the question of who will be prime minister, and the need for a broad unity government is not high on citizens’ list of priorities,” Erdan said.
Merger talks between Unity, Blue and White fail
The statement comes following N12 News’ Friday report that talks for a potential merger between Unity and the Blue and White party had failed.
Talks of a merger between the two parties have been ongoing for the past few weeks, yet Unity Party officials told N12 following Friday’s meeting that the discussions did not address any substantive issues or include a commitment to unite the bloc. They suggested that the true purpose of the meeting was to generate media attention.
In an interview with Walla published on Friday, Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz said he would not give up the top spot in merger talks.
“Because I need to lead this path,” Gantz said when asked why he should be placed first.
“Because I created it. I know what it needs. I have enough experience to know what to do and what not to do. And it’s not just about a catchy name in a campaign, or someone trying to take you down, it’s about what your essence is,” Gantz said.
When asked whether the people he is negotiating with understand that he will not give up the top spot, Gantz replied, “I believe so.”
Eisenkot calls on parties struggling to cross threshold to act responsibly, suspend campaigns
Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot commended Erdan’s decision to suspend his party’s campaign, calling it a “responsible and leadership-driven decision” that would increase the chances of replacing the October 7 government and establishing a broad Zionist government that would bring healing and recovery to Israel.
Eisenkot called on other parties struggling to cross the electoral threshold to make similar decisions, saying, “Any party that is hovering around the electoral threshold should act with the same responsibility and put the good of Israel ahead of any other consideration.”
